smith



F. SMITH. MACHINE FOR AFFIXING AND CANCELING STAMPS.

. APPLICATION FILED JULIl 28. 1915. 1,195,1 15. Pamn1ed1111g.15,1916.

s SHEETS-SHEET 1.

F. SMITH. MACHINE FOR AFFIXING AND CANCELING` STAMPS. APPLICATION FILED IuLYzB. I9I5.

Patented Aug. 15, 1.916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

III III /I TTOHIVEYS F. SMITH.

MACHINE FOR AFFIXING AND CANCELING STAMPS. APPLxcATloN men 11111128.1915.

Patented Auw. 15, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

By M

/1 TTOHIVEYS 1n eras ra @nur ormoni.

FLOYD SMITH, OF DOUGLAS, ARIZONA.

MACHINE FOR AFFIXING- AND CANCELING STAMPS.

Application filed July 28, 1915.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, FLOYD SMITH, a citi- Zen of the United States, and a resident of Bouglas, in the county of Cochise and State of Arizona, have invented a new and Improved Machine for Aflixing and Canceling Stamps, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention is more particularly designed for all'ixing and canceling stamps on parcel post packages.

An object of the invention is to provide a. machine for the indicated purpose, comprising a series of units separably operable to affix stamps of a particular denomination and cancel the same after having been affixed; to provide for automatically feeding the stamps from a roll and severing the same as the stamp is applied and canceled; and to provide a machine in which the units are adjustable in unison, to various heights, to suit packages of varying sizes.

The invention also has for its purpose to provide a machine of the indicated character, improved in various particulars, whereby to insure accuracy of the operations, and in which the different elements are assembled in compact form.

The novel features entering into the practical embodiment of the invention, serve to effectively and conveniently carry out the purpose of the invention, as will be hereinafter more particularly explained.

Reference is had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views, and in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a machine embodying my invention, the casings of certain of the units being removed; Fig. 2 is an end elevation; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the machine as shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is an enlarged longitudinal vertical section at the forward end of a unit; Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4, but with the parts in different positions; and Fig. 6 is a sectional plan view of the mechanism with the parts in the position shown in Fig. il.

In constructing a machine embodying my invention, in accordance with the illustrated example, a series of units 10 are provided for alfixing and canceling stamps of diderent dimensions. The several units are supported on standards 11 on a suitable base 12. In order to provide for the vertical adjustment Specification of Letters Patent.

Serial No. 42,277.

of the several units to accommodate packages of dierent sizes therebeneath, the respective units are mounted on a transverse bar or rod la which is provided with yokes 13 at the ends thereof having sliding engagement with standards 11. The bar 1ahas blocks or equivalent means, 15, thereon which are suitably secured to the casing 16 of each unit 10. The yokes 13 are suspended by straps 17 or other iiexible elements which have connection with winding drums 13, each drum being under the influence of a coil spring 19 therein. In xed relation to each drum is a ratchet wheel 20 engaging with which is a double pawl or pallet 21 pivoted between its ends as at 22 to the standards 11. The ratchet wheel has a suitable handle 23 and the pawl a handle 24C for manipulating the same, to raise or lower the yokes 13.

Gn each unit 12 is an operating handle 25 arranged for vertical movement. Preferably the handle is tubular and slides on a tubular post 27 secured to a cross-member 26 of the casing 16, the said tube and handle housing a spring 28 for elevating the handle after a depression thereof.

In xed rela-tion to each handle 25 to be moved vertically therewith is a U-shaped frame member 29, the side members of which have forwardly extending arms 30. A cross-bar 31 extending between the side arms 30 passes through a slot 32 in a lever 33, said lever being pivoted at its upper end as at 3a to a forwardly extending fixed arm on thecross piece 26 of the casing 16. rEhe lever 33 serves to actuate the slide 36 carrying a clamp for gripping a postage stamp, and the slot 32 of the lever is so formed that the cross bar 31 when moved.

vertically by the movement of the handle 25,

will give the necessary movement to the said lever. It is to be observed from Figs. a and 5 that the slot 32 at its upper end has a short member 32a from which the slot is deflected obliquely in a rearward direction, as at 32h, the lower portion for approximately one-half of the length of the lever being again deflected as at 32C at such an angle that it will be disposed vertically after a forward movement of the slide 36. rEhe slide 36 moves in oblique slots 37 formed in the casing 16 at the forward end thereof near the bottom. IThe connection between the lever 33 and the said slide is by means of a slot and pin, there being a cross bar or pin 3S on the said slide 36 passing through a slot 39 formed in a forward extension 33n of the lever, said slot 39 running generally in the same direction as the slot It will thus be seen that as the cross bar 31 is carried downwardly by depression of the handle 25, the said bar upon entering the oblique portion 32b of the slot 32, will throw the lever 33 outwardly from the position shown in Fig. 4, by reason of contacting with the left hand wall of the said slot. The rocking of the lever will continue until the member 32c of the slot is brought to a vertical position. When the bar 31 is moved to the dotted line position, Fig. 5, the slide 36 will. have been carried outwardly from the position shown in Fig. 4 tothat shown in Fig. 5 and will 'have clamped Vand carried forwardly a postage stamp, as hereinafter explained, through the medium of a resilient clamp jaw 40 secured to said slide 36 by rivets 41, or other means.

The postage stamps in roll form are carried by a roller 42, (see Fig. 2) the trunnions of which are slipped into the vertical slots 42a in the casing 16. The strip of stamps is first passed from the roller beneath guides 43 (Figs. 4 and 5) and is adapted to be yieldingly pressed against a table by a strip of rubber 46 carried by arms 44 which are hung on a transverse rod 45, there being arms 47 integral with the arms 44 and provided with a. weight 4S to exert the necessary pressure against the stamps passing over 'the table 50. Beneath the table 50 is a well 51 to contain water for moistening stamps. The water may be entered through an inlet 52 leading froma vertical funnel A sponge or other piece of absorbent material 54 is carried by a head 55 which moves through a vertical slot 51a in the table 50 at the'forward end of the latter. The head 55 is carried by a vertical rod 56, said `rod being hung on the arm 57 through a bell crank lever which is fulcrumed as at 58 on the vertical member 59a of a bracket 59 secured within the casing 16. The other arm 60 of the bell crank lever extends upwardly, and a. spring 61a secured to the bracket 59 presses aga-inst the back of the said arm 60, tending to so rock the bell crank lever as to depress the head 55 toimmerse the lower end of the absorbing material 54. In order to raise the absorbent material 54, a lever 61 is fulcrumed between its ends as at 62 on a bracket 59 and Y has a fork 63 at its front end adapted to be yengaged and tripped by a cross bar (S4-carried .by the members of the frame 29, the said. bar 64 moving vertically in unison with the bar 31 which operates the stamp carryi Y ing slide 36. The cross bar 64 carries a canceling stamp 65 preferably of that form Vwhich is given a turn through 180 degrees as it is depressed, so that when in the raised through the vertical kmoveinent ment in the casingV 16, being hung as at 70 Y to a lever 71 which is fulcrumed as Vat7 2 in a suitable bracket 73 in thecasing 16. Said lever has an upwardly extending arm 74 soY that the lever is generally of bell crank form, and a spring catch 75 is arranged in connection with the armV 74 and formed with a hooked end 76 toengage over the for- Vward free end of said arm 74. Y rThe function of the spring 75 is to firmly hold the knife 69 raised above the path of movement ofv the postage stamp and its gripping slide 36. In order to release the knife 69 and cause the same to be depressed, fplate springs 77 are provided, said springs pressing at Vtheir rear ends on the rod 45 or equivalent projection (see Figs. 5 and 6) theforward'iends of the springs bearing against .the outwardly projecting ends of a head 78, to which 'the knife 69 is secured, the said head being co f nected with its lever 71 by a shank 79. Between its ends the spring is tensioned under lateral pins 80 on the casing 16. `Torelease the knife carrying lever 71 from the spring catch 75, and permit the springs 77 to depress the knife with a quick movement, a release lever 81 is fulcrumed as at S2 tothe bracket 73 or otherwise and is provided nearVV the rear end beyond the fulcrum with a ico lateral pin 82 adapted to frictionally engage the front edge of the lever arm 74, said front edge of the lever 74 having such a form that the said arm will be cammed rearwardly by the pin 82. Adjacent to the pin S2, lever 81V carries a pivoted dog S3 which is pressed lli)V against by a spring 84 that normally tends v to throw the dog toward theV lever arm 74. To depress the lever 81, thel same is formed at its forward end with a fork 84` adapted to be received bar 64. Y

lVhen the canceling stamp 65 isfin the raised position (Fig. 4) therleverrs'61 and '81 and to be tripped by the cross will be adjacent to each otherand'ftheir forks will Vbe. in engagement Ywith Vthe cross bar'64i Upon the handle 25 being depressed and the bars 31, 64, carried downwardly, the

rod 3l'will move inthe member 32a ofV theYYY slot 32wvithout.affectingthe lever 33,.'butV 'the rod 64 will carry the canceling stamp 65 downwardly and will rock V,theelevers 61', 81.v

The rocking of the Vlever `61' will cause the isc'Y lateral pin 6la thereon to move against the front cam face 60LL of the lever arm 60 and will thereby throw the lever arm 57 upwardly and raise the absorbent material 54 to the position shown in Fig. 5 approximately at the level of the table 50 to meisten a. stamp passing thereover. ln the continued downward movement of the bar 64 it will leave the fork 68 of the lever Gl and will rock the lever G1 carrying the dog S3 and pin S2 on said lever 8l upwardly. The combined movements of the said pin 82 and dog S3 will release the catch 75 from the lever arm 74 and will permit the springs 77 to depress the knife 69, the movements being timed so that the knife will descend and sever a postage stamp after the canceling stamp has been brought down upon the same. ln the downward movement of the support 3l simultaneously with the bar (le, when the said bar 31 reaches the oblique portion 321 of the slot 32, the slide 3G will move forwardly away from the table 50 and carry a stamp beneath the path of the descending Canceling stamp G5 prior to the said canceling stamp reaching the lowered position. The forward movement of the slide 3G is arrested when the bar 3l reaches the dotted line position, Fig. 5, so that for the remaiir ing downward movement of the oar 3l there will ce no movement of the slide 36.

ln order to open and close the jaw 40, l provide beneath the same a transverse cam S5 which is rockably mounted on the slide 36. ln fixed relation to the cam S5 at one end thereof, is an upwardly projecting lever 87 and in the path of movement of said lever is a trip SS pivoted as at 89 to a side of the casing 1G adjacent to the lever 33. Upon a forward movement of the slide 36 the lever 87 will contact with the trip 88 to freely swing the latter to a position so that its forward edge will lie in the downward path of the bar 31. Toward the end of the downward movement of said bar 8l, it will contact with the trip 88 and force the same against the lever 87, thus rocking the cam S5 to a position to open the jaw L10. As soon as the lever S7 is carried rearwardly to a position to grip a postage stamp at the forward end of the table 50, the said lever 87 will contact with the knife 69, giving a reverse rocking movement to the cam and permitting the jaw et() to close.

rllhe forward end of the well 5l and the bottom of the casing 16 present surfaces at an angle to each other and serve as a gage to receive and position a package beneath the stamp afiXing and stamp canceling element G5 to properly receive the postage stamps.

It will thus be evident that the web or strip of postage stamps will be delivered from the roll 42 or equivalent supply means and advanced to a position for the forward end of the web to be grasped by the carrier slide 36, and the front postage stamp brought forwardly to a position beneath the element 65, which, in pressing the postage stamp onto the package, serves the dual purpose of aliixing and canceling the positioned postage stamp, the knife G9 functioning at the proper time to sever the aliixed stamp. The operations are completeh,7 automatic following the depression of the handle or equivalent depressible operating element Having thus descrribed my invention, what l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

l. A machine of the character describer, including postage stamp supply means, a canceling stamp mounted to vertically reciprocate to and from the path of travel of the postage stamp from the supply means, an inking pad above the canceling stamp, a carrier movable transversely of the movement of the canceling stamp to and from a position to receive a postage stamp from the supply means, and a depressible operatA ing device arranged to actuate the canceling stamp between the ink pad and the path of travel of the postage stamp, the said operating device being connected with the said carrier to actuate the same intermittently with the canceling stamp.

2. 1n a machine of the character described, a stamp supply means, a vertically reciprocating stamp afiixing device, a stamp carrier reciprocating transversely of the movement of the aliixing device to and from a position to receive a stamp from the supply means, a depressible operating device carrying the said aliixing device, and a l ver connected at the lower end with the carrier, fulcrumed at the upper end to rock in .a vertical plane toward and from the stamp aiiixing device, said lever having a slot ranging' lengthwise thereof, the sl ot present ing a portion oblique to the general direction of the lever and a. lower portion parallel to the general direction of the lever, there being a member on the operating device moving in said slot to actuate the lever by engagement therewith at the oblique portion of the slot, said member moving freely along the lever at the parallel portion of the slot without affecting the lever.

8. A stamp applying machine including a stamp supply means, a stamp afi'ixing device mounted to vertically reciprocate to and from the path of movement of a stamp from the supply means, a carrier mounted to reciprocate transversely to and from a position beneath the a'HiXing device to receive a stamp from the supply means and position it beneath the said aiixing device, a depressible operating device carrying said aiiixing device, a lever connected with the carrier and fulcrumed on a relatively fixed support to rock in a vertical plane, a memzal,

ber movable with the operating device and so engaging said lever as to rock the same to and fro while the aflixing device is nearing` and leaving its raised position, a. vertically reciprocating moistener, means controlled by the operating device to raise the moistener to the path of movement of a stamp by the c-arrier and release the moistener to permit it to move downwardly, a vertically reciprocating knife, spring means to depressthe knife and means controlled by the operating device to raise the knife and then release it for the spring means to act.

4:. In a machine of the character described, a stamp supply means, a vertically reciprocating stamp ailixing device, a stamp carrier reciprocating` transversely of the movement of the atlixing device to and from a position to receive a stamp from the supply means, a depressible operating device carrying the said alixing device, a lever connected at the lower end with the carrier, and fulcrumed at the upper end to rock in a vertical plane toward and from the stamp aliixing device, said lever having a slot ranging lengthwise thereof, the slot presenting a portion oblique to the general direction of the lever and a lower portion parallel to the general direction of the lever, there being a member on the operating device moving in said slot to actuate the lever by engagement therewith at the oblique portion of the slot, said member moving freely along the lever at the parallel portion of the slot without affecting the lever, vertically reciprocating moistener, a bell crank lever one arm of which carries said moistener, a lever controlled by the operating device and engageable with the other arm of the bell crank lever to raise the moistener and to release the moistener and permit it to move Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Washington, D. C.

downward, a vertically reciprocating knife, spring means to depress said knife, a second bell crank lever on one arm of which said knife is suspended, a knife-controlling lever actuated bythe operating device and engageable with the other arm of the second bell crank lever, a spring catch to engage the said other arm of the second bell crank lever, and means on the knife-controlling lever to release the said springcatch and permit the said spring means to depress the knife.

5. A stamp applying machine including a stamp supply means, a vertically reciprocating stamp aflixing device movable to and from the path of travel of a sta-mp from the supply means, a carrier movable to and from a position to receive a stamp from the supply means and adapted to locate a stamp beneath the aiixing device, a depressible operating device carrying the said stamp ailixing device, means to actuate said carrier by the said operating device, a resilient j aw on the carrier to grip a stamp to cause it toV move with the carrier, a jaw lifting device including a lever, and a pivoted trip engageable by the said lever in a forward movement thereof to rock the trip into a position to be engaged by the operative device, said operating device serving to give a reverse movement to the trip for rocking said lever and opening the jaw, there being means to engage said lever and to permit the jaw to close after a stamp has entered beneath the jaw.

In testimony whereof I have subscribed my name to this speciiication in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FLOYD SMITH.

IVitnesses: Y

Ronn'r N. FRENCH, G. E. BEAM.

"Commissioner of Patents, 

